An Anaheim Ducks blog, from the perspective of a hockey fan armed with a camera

In praise of Bobby Ryan

"The biggest thing is just his poise and his hands are unbelievable. I played with [Evgeni] Malkin and [Sidney] Crosby, and those guys are probably the two best in the league. Bobby's hands are right with those guys... He's a superstar in the making, it seems."
---Ryan Whitney, former Ducks defenseman

Saturday, April 16, 2011

After Game 1's weak performance, I'm sure I wasn't the only Duck fan wanting our boys to step up in Game 2. We didn't watch them struggle so hard to get home ice only to have them drop both games at home!

Ray Emery between the pipes this time

It seems the hockey gods were on our side as the Predators took two penalties early in the first. Ducks made them pay on the 5-on-3 and again on the 5-on-4. The energy fueled fans and players alike as the Ducks turned out a much-improved first period of true playoff hockey. They took a 2-0 lead into the locker room.

That's how you do it, boys!

Lovin' the new kid line of Matt Beleskey, Brandon McMillan (not pictured), and Nick Bonino

The speed and energy of our new kid line spun the Nashville defenders in circles as they kept the puck in the offensive zone. Great shifts for the young guns.

Our big line finally showed up to play too. Corey Perry got one of the two goals in the first, and his counterparts Bobby Ryan and Ryan Getzlaf would both light the lamp in the second. With some beautiful saves by Emery, the Ducks were able to keep the Preds to only one goal for their four through the first 40 minutes of play.

Nashville rallied during the third and managed to close the goal gap to one. But Bobby sealed their fate with an empty netter in the last minute of regulation.

When you know your team can play with this level of passion and skill, you gotta believe they can turn this series around. It's even now, 1-1, and hopefully our boys are able to pull off a couple more wins during games 3 and 4 in Nashville.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

It's a special time of year, folks. A time that brings out the best in fans and teams alike.

It's a time that brings the orange towels back to the Ponda

It's playoffs!!

And it feels all the more special because we didn't have a post-season last year. Our Anaheim Ducks screamed into the playoffs like a runaway train barreling down the tracks, not slowing until it had attained the 4th seed.

The 4th seed and home ice! As the final games of the season wound down, Dallas would fall out of playoff contention, both the Kings and the Coyotes would slip a notch or two from their seeds, and Chicago would conveniently squeeze into 8th.

The Ducks would face the Nashville Predators in round one.

Personally, I would have preferred a series against the Chicago Blackhawks over Nashville. Not because I think the Hawks would have been easy to beat, but rather, I don't like how well Pred's goaltender Pekka Rinne has managed to stymie our boys this season. The Preds have a rock-solid defense this season. If they manage to score a few goals early on, their defense collapses around their goaltender and they easily defend that lead to a victory.

My biggest Predator: Pekka Rinne

Frustration isn't something our boys handle well, and with the questions still surrounding our goaltending situation, this wasn't going to be an easy series.

Either way, it is what it is. No reason why we can't enjoy the post-season for as long as we're in it!

Games 1 and 2 would be played at home, and the Ponda rolled out the playoff carpet for the fans.

Eats and seats in the Playoff Spot outside the Ponda to get grub, beer, and watch ongoing playoff games before our game

Inside the Ponda, playoff towels on every seat set the atmosphere

Expectations ran high for Game 1. Our boys were on a winning streak, hopefully they could keep the momentum going. There was an exceptionally emotional opening video which gave me chills and misty eyes at the same time. Win or lose, just being at a playoff game is awesome in and of itself.

Would the big line continue to dominate?

Dan Ellis would start in net, would he be able to hold down the fort?

Well... if you were there for Game 1, I don't need to tell you how disappointing that turned out to be. Our Ducks just couldn't get it together. Passes weren't connecting, play looked sloppy and disjointed, puck possession was non-existent, and the passion... the drive... it just wasn't there.

The Preds, to give them credit, came out with guns ablazing. Delivering hard hits and putting tons of pressure on the puck, they backed our Ducks into a corner. Even the power play was nullified. The first two periods would see them putting three unanswered goals on the board.

I don't want to be one to complain about the officiating, but honestly, it didn't help. Our boys got frustrated with ticky-tack calls and non-calls, and that only led to sloppy penalties.

Ellis made some great saves in the beginning, but having no support can wear a goaltender down. I think his confidence was shaken as pucks began to get by him. After the fourth Pred goal during the third period, Ellis was pulled for Ray Emery.

Emery managed to stop the bleeding, but by the middle of the third, the Preds had pretty much stopped pushing. Teemu Selanne, bless his heart, got the Ducks on the board with about 8 minutes left in the third.

This towel-waving opportunity brought to you by Teemu Selanne

But that would be it for this game. As discouraging and frustrating as it may be, I simply cannot justify leaving before a game is over. Come on people, you're supposed to be fans, this is your team.

Hard to believe it was a sold-out crowd at the beginning of the game...

Saturday, April 9, 2011

This was the Anaheim Ducks annual Fan Appreciation Game but, more importantly, it was the game that, if won in regulation, would allow the Ducks to clinch a playoff berth.

Either way, it was going to be a big game made even bigger considering the opponents were none other than hated rivals the Los Angeles Kings.

Still out with a lower body injury, Ray Emergy would sit this one out as a healthy scratch. Jonas Hiller was announced as the backup to Dan Ellis.

As exciting as it was to see Hiller, I really prayed that Ellis would be on his game tonight. Hiller did NOT look sharp during warmups

Serious expressions on the faces of our Ducks. There was a lot riding on this game

In the early minutes of the game, both teams took their time feeling one another out. With Jonathan Quick in goal for the Kings, I suspected it would be harder rather than easier to get pucks into the net.

The Kings would score first, making the score 1-0 as we entered the first intermission.

Ryan Getzlaf's bid goes wide

RPG line attempting to crash the crease and get traffic to the net

Honestly, I feel that our boys play better when they're trying to come up from behind. Call it that extra bit of motivation, they just seem to be that much hungrier.

At about the game's halfway mark, they would be rewarded.

The Ponda erupting with a goal by the great eight

Just another record set in another typical night for the Finnish Flash

The score at the end of the 2nd is 1-1. 20-minute hockey game, folks.

I wonder which section won the thunder sticks??

The tempo of the 3rd was fast and feverish. Both teams pushed themselves to break the tie. I was particularly happy with how loud the crowd was. Definitely felt like playoff atmosphere.

And then, with a little over fourteen minutes to go, the Flash decides this team isn't going to get any help reaching playoffs (Dallas just won over the Colorado Avalanche, keeping them in the race), so he took matters into his own hands.

Off an amazing feed from Saku Koivu, Selanne gets one behind a falling Quick

The Masterton line, getting work done

The crowd is on their feet, screaming. Ducks have pushed ahead 2-1. If only our boys can just hang on! Fourteen minutes have never felt so long.

Thanks to the heroics of Ellis in goal, and a defense that has had a season to finely tune itself, our boys get the job done. Ducks win 2-1 but more importantly, ensure themselves a spot in the top eight.

Acknowledgments

Photos in the headers and sidebar appear courtesy of zimbio.com. Photos within the text of the blog are ones that I have taken myself unless otherwise cited. Please do not reproduce them without my permission, thanks! --Ducks54